Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh said he is happy to fill in the captaincy shoes of Pat Cummins in the first ODI against South Africa at Kingsmead, Durban. Cummins was rested in the first ODI to manage his workload ahead of the Test series against the Proteas.

Marsh has been leading Australia in T20Is and has done a decent job. The all-rounder revealed that Cummins main focus is with the Test team.

“Pat’s main focus is the Test group. I’m hopeful that he’ll feature in the series at some stage, but while he’s not I’m very happy to do it (captain),” Marsh told the media ahead of the first ODI versus South Africa, indicating that the captaincy arrangement for later ODIs would depend on Cummins’ availability and involvement in the series.

Interestingly, Cummins has played only two ODIs out of a possible 31 since leading Australia to the 2023 World Cup title. He played his last 50-over game against Pakistan in November 2024 at Adelaide.

When asked if Cummins would return for the remaining ODIs, Marsh said, “I guess we’ll find out when he plays!” 

Meanwhile, Cameron Green is dealing with a shoulder injury and Marsh admitted that the injury woes are leading to their problems.

“Across the board injuries happen, we’ve had our fair share as well,” Marsh said. “But what I do know is that whatever XI South Africa names, they’ll come out and play hard cricket and we’re looking forward to that,” Marsh stated.

South Africa registered a 67-run win in the opening ODI after Matthew Breetzke scored an impressive knock of 112 runs. 

The second ODI between South Africa and India will be played at the Wanderers Stadium, Johannesburg, on Sunday.